STATE CAPITAL BRIEFS: TUESDAY, MAY 12, 2015
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

CONVICTIONS IN ‘DUTY TO RETREAT’ CASES OVERTURNED

In cases from Duval and Santa Rosa counties, an appeals court Tuesday overturned convictions of three men because of conflicting jury instructions about a duty to retreat during violent altercations.

At least two of the men argued that they acted in self-defense under the state’s controversial “stand your ground” law, though all three cases involved similar issues about jury instructions, according to the rulings by the 1st District Court of Appeal.

On ‘Dry Gulching’

by Peter Burlingame

Is it Ever OK to Shoot Someone in the Back?

Dry Gulching. That’s what it was called back in the Old West when a no good, claim jumping, sidewinder shot some poor sodbuster in the back from ambush. It’s always been considered low down, dealing from the bottom of the deck, no good cheating, type of despicable behavior.

Shooting someone in the back flies in the face of ‘being a good sport’, it goes against our sense of fair play. But, are there times when it can be justified? Not only legally, but morally and ethically?

The short answer is yes.

When? The same as any other time you are justified to use lethal force. Let’s review that. When I took Mas Ayoob’s LFI I class back in ’92, he taught us that “you can use lethal force if there is an immediate, otherwise unavoidable, threat of death or grave bodily injury, to the innocent. “ The threat has to be happening right now, you can’t get away from it, the attacker has the capability to hurt you, and you or the person you are protecting has done nothing to provoke the attack.

If those conditions are met, then you are justified, not just legally, but morally and ethically, to use lethal force. Now, let’s go back to our original question, “is it ever OK to shoot someone in the back?” Can you think of situations where someone’s back is towards you, yet they meet the ‘immediate, unavoidable, threat of death, to the innocent criteria’?

Christopher Brooks, 38, faces attempted second-degree murder charges stemming from an Oct. 23 shooting on his property in Polk County. Brooks, who was accosted by two men in his yard, said he fired a shot to defend himself and his family. (Sept. 19, 2014; Herald-Tribune staff photo by Mike Lang)

Sarasota businessman in ‘stand your ground’ shooting case

Published: Wednesday, October 29, 2014 at 1:34 p.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, October 29, 2014 at 1:51 p.m.

POLK COUNTY – A Sarasota businessman is involved in a “Stand Your Ground” case that, not unlike the George Zimmerman shooting, raises questions about a person’s right to defend themselves and their family in Florida.

Christopher A. Brooks, 38, lives in Mulberry, a small town in rural Polk County, along with his fiance and her young children.

In 2006, his fiance’s daughter — who was 4 at the time — was molested by Bryan James Mace, then a 14-year-old who lived across the street.

Mace, now 21, pleaded no contest to the charges, was adjudicated as a delinquent and was sent to a juvenile detention center.

When Mace was released, Brooks obtained a permanent restraining order barring the man from coming within 500 feet of his home. The order effectively prohibits Mace from visiting his parent’s house, as it is well within the 500-foot limit.

On Sept. 25, Mace was arrested for violating the court order, state records show.

“He was walking around the neighborhood and in front of our home very suspiciously,” Brooks said. “I called the cops and they took him away.”

According to data supplied by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Mace pleaded no contest to violating the court order, and was fined $50 and sentenced to one year of probation.

On Oct. 23 at about 3:30 p.m., Brooks called police again, telling them Mace was in his driveway yelling obscenities and making threats against his daughter.

Mace was arrested, taken to the Polk County jail and charged with violating the restraining order and violating his probation.

He remains in custody, held without bail. Efforts by the Herald-Tribune to reach him for comment were not successful.

A confrontation

Once Mace was arrested, his family and friends began gathering at his parents’ home across the street, Brooks said.

“They started hurling insults and screaming, ‘You messed with the wrong people. You’re gonna pay for this. You don’t know what you’ve gotten into,’ ” Brooks said. “I was scared for me and my family. My main concern was that the kids were home. Our daughter was hearing all of this.”

That evening about 7 p.m., Brooks returned home and parked in the driveway.

As he was retrieving something from the back seat of his car, he says someone pushed him forward.

There were two men, according to police records, including Mace’s stepfather, Curtis Hamrick Jr. The other man was not identified in the report.

“They said I was trying to ruin their son, and that I was gonna get it, and that I was in for it,” Brooks said. “They knocked my glasses off. I couldn’t see. We struggled back and forth. That’s when I unzipped my bag, pulled my gun and made my shot.”

Court documents show that the . 45 caliber round that Brooks fired penetrated Hamrick’s “upper left abdomen and continued through his upper left arm.”

“I was scared and in fear for my life,” Brooks said, adding in an interview with the Herald-Tribune that he worried the men aimed to “get past me and get into the house and attack the girls,” Brooks said. “I don’t know what they would have done. . . . They’ve always maintained that it was our daughter’s fault their son was arrested.”

But Hamrick told deputies another version of events, saying he believed Brooks had a suspended driver’s license — Brooks’ license is valid — and that he approached Brooks because “he wanted to capture a picture of him operating a motor vehicle.”

According to police report, when Hamrick and his associate saw that Brooks was out of his vehicle, they turned to walk home.

At this point, Hamrick told investigators, Brooks “suddenly appeared from the dark holding a black bag. (Hamrick) verbally confronted (Brooks) regarding his son’s arrest in a non-violent manner.”

Hamrick said he felt a sudden burning sensation and numbness in his left arm. He thought he had been Tasered. He did not know he had been shot until he returned home and saw he was bleeding.

Conflicting accounts

After the shooting, both sides of the dispute called 911.

Polk County Sheriff’s Detective William “Michael” Rushing, who had been promoted to detective last year, was sent to the scene.

In his report, Rushing wrote that Brooks “felt like he was going to be killed, and so he believed he needed to retrieve his Glock model 30 . 45 caliber handgun and fire a shot at the men.”

Brooks told the detective that during the melee he had been pushed back into the driver’s side mirror of his car.

Rushing concluded otherwise: “There was no damage, movement or scuffs to this side mirror that would suggest (Brooks) had been pushed against it, as his story described,” Rushing wrote.

The detective noted that he had found the spent shell casing in Brooks’ yard, near the roadway, a site he determined that was not consistent with Brooks’ account of firing near his vehicle.

He did not report anything about Brooks’ glasses.

Brooks said they were stomped and damaged during the melee and recovered as evidence.

Rushing’s report makes no mention of the threats that Brooks says were hurled all day, or the fear he felt for the safety of his family. Rushing also noted that Brooks’ statement conflicted with Hamrick’s version as well as that of a witness: Charlotte Mace, Hamrick’s wife.

Neither Hamrick nor his wife returned calls from the Herald-Tribune seeking comment.

Rushing, who four months ago was investigating shoplifting complaints and vehicle burglaries, determined the incident was a bad shoot and arrested Brooks for attempted second-degree murder.

“I did not find evidence that there is reason to believe the suspect had a well-founded fear of serious injury or death, which would justify the use of deadly force against the victim,” Rushing wrote.

Polk County Sheriff’s Capt. Mike Wiggins told the Herald-Tribune he is satisfied that his deputies handled the investigation correctly.

“Based upon the info I have — and I’ve talked to the detective and the supervisor — the evidence and the witnesses that were interviewed provided a different story, and based upon that, I think probable cause exists for the charge,” Wiggins said.

The sheriff’s captain said he believes the shooting occurred on the road between the two homes, not in Brooks’ driveway.

Brooks’ fiance, Wiggins said, told investigators the shooting occurred in the street, though Brooks challenges that notion: “She was inside the whole time,” he said.

Rushing declined to comment for this story, citing department policy.

According to documents obtained by the Herald-Tribune through a public records request, Rushing received a “Letter of Retraining” in 2010 for poor crime scene processing.

FDLE records show that Rushing has received no specialized detective or crime-scene training beyond the academy.

He was hired by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office in 2005, but resigned in 2007. He then worked for Haines City Police Department for two months, and then for the Bartow Police Department for four months. In 2009, he was rehired by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.

Jail, then bail

Brooks spent two nights in the Polk County jail until he was taken before a judge Saturday morning.

His bail was set at $25,000, though prosecutors wanted substantially more.

“The judge didn’t buy it,” said Brooks, who was freed from jail after paying $2,500 to a bondsman.

Brooks, who works part-time for a firearms training company in Sarasota County, is trying to start his own custom firearms business and also works part-time for an indoor range and gun store. He has attended numerous firearms training courses.

Lee’s note: The Florida law that forbids physicians from questioning patients about firearms ownership has been upheld. An appeals court overturned a lower court’s decision Friday, which found the law was unconstitutional.

The law, which was backed by the National Rifle Association and signed into law by Gov. Rick Scott, has been upheld.

Marion Hammer, executive director of the Unified Sportsmen of Florida and past president of NRA, said Friday evening she was “very pleased.”

We’ll have more reporting about this case next week.

Here’s a brief from the AP:

By Associated Press

TALLAHASSEE — A federal appeals court is upholding a Florida law restricting what doctors can discuss about guns with their patients.

A panel of judges on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta on Friday overturned a decision from a lower court that found the law unconstitutional.

The appeals court called the law a “legitimate regulation of professional conduct” and that the limits imposed by it were “incidental.”

The law passed in 2011 was declared unconstitutional by U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke, who agreed with doctors and gun control advocates that it violated the free speech rights of Florida physicians.

Attorneys representing physicians said the law censored speech because doctors would not risk a potential loss of license or fines up to $10,000 for violating it.

Lee’s note: Here’s a great history of the Second Amendment credentials of Gov. Rick Scott and former Gov. Charlie Crist by the News Service of Florida.

SCOTT ENACTED SINGLE TERM HIGH OF 12 PRO-GUN LAWS

By JIM TURNER
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE, July 9, 2014……Gov. Rick Scott appears nearly bulletproof right now in the eyes of the National Rifle Association.

That assessment of Scott comes as the NRA notes that more pro-gun bills have been signed into law in the past four years than during any other recent single gubernatorial term. The organization sent a message to members applauding Scott for setting the record.

Since taking office in 2011, Scott has signed into law 12 gun-related measures backed by the NRA. That total is nine more than former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist approved while enjoying an equally Republican-dominated Legislature between 2007 and 2010. Crist is now running for the Democratic nomination to face Scott in the November elections.

The total number of Scott’s signings remains two fewer than those inked by former Gov. Jeb Bush, who also affixed his name to a one-year record six pro-gun and pro-hunting bills in 2006. A year earlier, Bush had signed the “stand your ground” law. However, Bush’s overall total of 14 new pro-guns laws came during eight years as the occupant of the Governor’s Mansion.

“Governor Scott supports the Second Amendment, and works every day to ensure Florida families are kept safe,” spokesman John Tupps said in an email. “Florida is at a 43-year crime low, and Governor Scott will review any legislation that the Legislature passes and sends to his desk.”

The bills signed by Scott have ranged from the highly contentious, such as the “docs vs. glocks” law in 2011 that has been on hold since being thrown out by a federal judge in 2012, to less controversial laws that reduced the fees for a new concealed carry weapon and allowed tax collectors’ offices handle concealed-weapon license applications.

“The bills that Gov. Scott has signed will make and have made an enormous difference,” said Marion Hammer, the powerful lobbyist for the NRA and Unified Sportsmen of Florida. “These laws will have major impact on law abiding gun owners.”

She wasn’t as praiseworthy of the more politically flexible Crist, who left office with an “A” rating by the NRA and campaigned in 2010 for the U.S. Senate claiming to have “never wavered in his support for the Second Amendment.”

Crist earned the “profound appreciation” of the NRA in May 2009 for vetoing the Legislature’s plan to sweep $6 million from the Concealed Weapons and Firearms Licensing Trust Fund to patch a hole in the state budget. Crist also won praise when signing legislation to allow concealed weapons permit-holders to keep their guns in their vehicles while at work, and by appointing NRA-supported judges Charles Canady and Ricky Polston to the state Supreme Court.

But Hammer alluded to Crist being less than supportive as “critically important bills” were discussed outside of committee meetings while he was still governor.

“When you’re trying to pass legislation, sometimes legislators will ask (the governor) what they’ll do, and if they’re non-committal, that’s always like a negative,” Hammer said when asked about Crist.

A spokesman for Crist said Wednesday that the former governor maintains his belief in the Second Amendment, but favors “sensible gun safety steps” to keep communities and children safe.

“For example, he believes we should get military-style assault weapons and high-capacity clips off the streets and institute tougher background checks to keep dangerous weapons out of the wrong hands,” Kevin Cate, a spokesman for Crist, responded in an email.

The increase in gun-friendly bills becoming law comes as more Floridians are registered gun owners.

As of May 31, there were 1.27 million concealed-weapon or firearm licenses issued in Florida, according to the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The state went over the 1 million mark in Dec. 2012, becoming the first state in the nation to surpass that figure.

And the Florida Department of Law Enforcement conducted 869,457 background checks on firearm purchases in 2013. The annual number of checks grew from 406,370 in 2007, when Crist took office, to 606,655 in 2011, Scott’s first year in office. Each check includes an examination of an applicant’s criminal history and mental-health database reviews.

Coconut Creek Democrat Rep. Jim Waldman, a gun owner who has not received glowing scores from the NRA, said the proliferation of pro-gun bills is more about catering to the Republican Party’s “ultra-right” base than sound policy.

“The only way a lot of Republicans get elected is, they need to beef up their bona fides, and one way to do that is to support gun legislation,” Waldman said.

Scott signed five gun-rights bills into law this year, after signing three each in 2011 and 2012. He signed one in 2013.

This year’s offerings would prohibit insurance companies from denying coverage or increasing rates based on customers owning guns or ammunition. Also, they would allow people to threaten to use force, including showing guns, in self defense. Another new law would prevent schoolchildren from being disciplined for simulating guns while playing or for wearing clothes that depict firearms.

“There were not a lot of contentious bills, they were not all that controversial, there were just some contentious people,” Hammer said.

Besides the opposition to “docs and glocks,” most of the gun related controversy in recent sessions has been through failed efforts by advocates seeking to repeal the 2005 “stand your ground” law, which says people can use deadly force and do not have a duty to retreat if they think it is necessary to prevent death or great bodily harm

The so-called “warning shot” law approved this year modified “stand your ground” by extending immunity to those who threaten to use force in self-defense.

In addition to “docs vs. glocks,” a law that restricts how doctors can talk to patients about guns, the 2011 laws signed by Scott included another one that continues to be challenged by cities and counties. That bill established $5,000 fines for county and city officials who enforce local firearms restrictions and empowered the governor to remove local officials from office if they continued to defy the state law.

In June, a judge sided with Palm Beach County against the provision that the governor could remove a county official from office for trying to enforce local gun control rules.

Not all of the gun laws have received universal praise from gun-rights advocates.

An NRA-backed measure Scott signed in 2013, crafted in the wake of 20 children and six adults being gunned down at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., was narrowly-focused on making it harder for the mentally ill to buy guns.

However, the issue put Scott in the crosshairs of two out-of-state groups.

The Colorado-based National Association for Gun Rights and the Virginia-based Gun Owners of America argued that the law — which blocks firearms purchases by some people who voluntarily admit themselves for mental-health treatment — would discourage people with mental illnesses from seeking treatment.

In a letter accompanying the bill signing, Scott noted that the measure was the product of mental-health and gun-rights advocates; he also highlighted his history of support for gun rights.

“During the 2012 GOP Convention, I was asked to issue a temporary executive order to override laws that allow people to carry concealed weapons, which I denied because it was unclear how disarming law-abiding citizens would better protect them from the damages and threats posed by those who would flout the law,” Scott wrote. “Additionally, I’ve signed legislation protecting the privacy of firearm owners and stopping local governments from overreaching in the regulation of firearms.”

SB-448 By Sen. Greg Evers was on the agenda for the Senate Criminal Justice Committee Meeting on Wednesday, January 8, 2014 at 9:00am.

The SB-448 PASSED the Committee by a vote of 5-0.

SB-448 by Senator Greg Evers is a bill to stop abusive prosecutors from using 10-20-LIFE to prosecute people who, in self-defense, threaten to use deadly force against an attacker as a

Sen. Evers

means to stop an attack.

Some anti-gun, anti-self-defense prosecutors have been abusing the 10-20-LIFE law to prosecute average citizens who displayed a weapon or gun in self-defense to make an attacker back off.

Bill Cervone, the State Attorney for the 8th Judicial Circuit represented the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association, attempted to defend prosecutors who have been violating the intent of 10-20-Life and abusing their discretion.

As reported by the News Service of Florida, the following misleading statement was made to the Committee in testimony by State Attorney Bill Cervone:

“If somebody is in prison for one of these situations, it’s because a judge and a jury rejected his version claiming self-defense.”

We know that statement is not accurate. Unfortunately, there are also people in prison because prosecutors threatened them with 10 or 20 years if they did not plead to a lesser number of years. That is coercion and abuse in these cases.

The threat of extreme mandatory sentences coerces innocent people into pleading — even if not to prison, to a felony crime with probation. This is especially true for citizens who have too much to lose (job, house, family) to risk going to trial.

Further, in some cases people have been convicted and imprisoned as a result of improper jury instructions. And Greg Newburn of FAMM reports that approximately 1/3 of these self-defense cases where people are being wrongly charged with aggravated assault under 10-20-Life for exercising lawful self-defense, result in judges throwing the cases out of court or juries acquitting these people who were wrongfully prosecuted.

The following link is to a news story that describes the dispute “spat” between Committee Chairman Greg Evers and Cervone over Cervone’s statements.

Some great legislation was passed, although some controversial bills became law too.

The state reached some important milestones, which speak to the ever increasing popularity of gun ownership among residents and visitors.

Given what’s happening elsewhere, such as mandatory registration of modern sporting rifles and their magazines in Connecticut, or New York’s outright prohibition of certain types of popular firearms, or California’s ban on lead bullets, things could be a lot worse.

The following are my picks for Florida’s Top 10 gun-related news stories of 2013.

Please feel free to let me know via a comment if I left something important off the list.

Happy New Year everyone!

Lee

10. George Zimmerman is acquitted. The jury has spoken. The national media circus has folded its tents and left the state. My takeaway from the trial was simple: I have never seen a better example of the need for ongoing (voluntary) firearms training. If Zim had availed himself of advanced training – as all serious shooters should do – the outcome might have been different. Too many shooters stop training after receiving their concealed carry license. In my opinion, that’s when tactical training should begin in earnest.

9. Public officials voiced opposition to ‘Stand your ground.’ It happened in Sarasota and elsewhere across the state. Elected officials made headlines by calling for repeal of the state’s “Stand your ground” law. Headlines they got, although I’m not sure the lawmakers liked the results. Other officials, such as the Leon County Commission and Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, tried to regulate firearms in their own unique ways. These efforts failed.

8. ‘Threatened use of force’ bill introduced. Rep. Neil Combee, R-Polk City, introduced long overdue legislation – which some call the “Warning Shot” bill – that allows an armed citizen to point their defensive pistol at an attacker without fear of getting charged under Florida’s 10-20-life law. The 10-20-life statute requires mandatory minimum sentences for any crime involving a firearm.

3. Scott signs the ‘Baker Act’ bill into law. Gov. Rick Scott signed HB-1355, the so called “Baker Act” gun bill, which bars the mentally ill from gun purchases. He faced massive opposition, and the move split the gun community. In a signing letter, a written statement attached to the more controversial bills, Scott pointed out that he is a “strong supporter of the Second Amendment,” and that he has signed legislation safeguarding the privacy of gun owners. The efficacy of the law has yet to be determined.

2. The Florida Department of Agriculture issues its one-millionth Concealed Carry License. Florida’s concealed carry program, which began in 1987, is a proven success and a proven revenue generator for the state. The only problem I see, other than purely Libertarian objections, is the waiting period. However, I’m told there are fixes in the works to cut down on the amount of time it takes to process an application. It’s also important to remember and credit the one person responsible for this program – Marion Hammer.

1. Efforts to repeal ‘Stand your ground’ fail. By an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 11-2, the Florida House Criminal Justice Committee defeated HB-4003, which would have repealed the “Stand your ground” law. The hearing drew 59 speakers from around the state, (24 in support of repeal and 35 opposed to repeal).

By an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 11-2, the Florida House Criminal Justice Committee stood its ground and defeated HB-4003, by Rep. Alan Williams(D).
HB-4003 would have repealed the Castle Doctrine/Stand Your Ground law.

House Speaker Will Weatherford kept his word. He gave Rep. Williams and his Dream Defenders the hearing they requested.

Committee Chairman Matt Gaetz kept his word. He skillfully and expertly ran a fair, open and orderly 5-hour hearing.

In a structured format, each side was allowed 30 minutes for Legislators who were not on the Committee to speak on the bill.

Speaking in support of repeal, Rep. Alan Williams was the only Legislator who spoke in the 30 minute time slot allocated for legislators to speak in favor of repeal.

Speaking for 2 minutes each were 59 speakers from around the state (24 in Support of repeal and 35 Opposed to repeal). Following speakers on both sides of the issue, and spirited closing debate, the vote was as follows:

WE OPPOSE HB-4003 by Rep. Alan Williams (D-Tallahassee). HB-4003 is a REPEALER bill that will repeal the “Stand Your Ground” law. The bill would repeal provisions of our self-defense laws relating to home protection & use of deadly force. It would once again put the law on the side of criminals.

The repeal would re-impose the “duty to retreat” and give protection to criminals by denying victims the right to fight back without first trying to run away. It would remove the law that allows you to stand your ground and fight back in the face of an attack likely to cause death or great bodily harm. This a bill to protect criminals.WE SUPPORT HB-89 by Rep. Neil Combee (R-Auburndale) & Rep. Katie Edwards (D-Sunrise) HB-89 is a bill to stop abusive prosecutors from using 10-20-LIFE to prosecute people who threaten to use deadly force against an attacker as a means to stop an attack.

Some anti-gun, anti-self-defense prosecutors have been abusing the 10-20-LIFE law to prosecute average citizens who displayed a weapon or gun in self-defense to make an attacker back off.

Average citizens who never would have been in the system if they had not been attacked and in fear for their own safety, are being persecuted and prosecuted for defending themselves. Because citizens took responsibility for their own safety, some prosecutors treat them like criminals and make them victims of a judicial system that is no longer about justice but rather about the whim or politics of prosecutors.

10-20-Life was passed to be used against criminals who use guns in the commission or attempted commission of crimes — NOT average citizens who use threats of force to defend themselves rather than actual force.

Moveon.org is backing the Sarasota City Commissioners who support repealing the state’s “Stand your ground” statute.

The progressive nonprofit, which claims more than 8 million members, launched an online petition to support the three commissioners who support repeal of the controversial statute.

“Area Republicans are already expressing their displeasure. Gun Crazy right wing Republicans are calling it “an outrage!” and e-mailed Republican Party members castigating commissioners for including Stand Your Ground reform in its list of priorities,” the petition states. “Let’s show Sarasota Commissioners our support for the reform of Stand Your Ground in Sarasota and that WE’VE GOT THEIR BACK! By signing this petition.”

As of Monday morning, there were 233 signatures.

Last week, the Sarasota GOP launched its own petition, in support of the “Stand Your Ground” statute. It had more than 1,500 signatures as of Monday morning.

A story published earlier revealed that when formulating their legislative priorities for next year, the Sarasota City Commission decided to support the repeal of the controversial statute.

Sarasota County’s longtime Republican activist Frances Rice said Wednesday she is pursuing a recall of three city commissioners who voiced opposition to the state’s “Stand Your Ground” statute.

Republican activist Frances Rice. Photo courtesy Frances Rice

Rice, a retired Army lieutenant colonel and attorney, who recently called for the impeachment of President Barack Obama, sent an email to Supervisor of Elections Kathy Dent this week, seeking information about the recall process.

In a statement sent late Wednesday night, Rice said she is “outraged over the blatant abuse of power and malfeasance of three Sarasota City Commissioners who put their own self-interest above that of the citizens of Sarasota by passing a resolution which calls for the repeal of Florida’s ‘Stand Your Ground’ self-defense law and which will result in the denial of our Second Amendment right under the U.S. Constitution.”

“I was inspired by the successful recall of Colorado Senate President John Morse and state Sen. Angela Giron,” Rice said. “They were ousted from office after they abridged the Second Amendment right of the citizens of Colorado with a draconian and unconstitutional gun-control law.

“It is unconscionable that Vice Mayor Shaw and Commissioners Atwell and Chapman are now using their elected office as a vehicle for abridging the Second Amendment right of the citizens of Sarasota.”

She noted that Sarasota Mayor Shannon Snyder and Commissioner Paul Caragiulo were the only two opposed to the proposal, and that Snyder was the only commissioner who spoke out against it.

“Sadly, Mayor Snyder’s position was not the majority view,” Rice said in the statement. “Vice Mayor Shaw and Commissioners Atwell and Chapman should be held accountable for their blatant abuse of power and malfeasance by being recalled from office.”

Since the FSA President’s statement was released on Friday supporting the Stand Your Ground Law, FSA has received overwhelming appreciation for our position and interest in detail on the recent vote.

(Attorney General Pam) Bondi and (House Speaker Will) Weatherford expressed the importance of law enforcement’s expert perspective on the Stand Your Ground Law.

On August 6, 2013, the 57 Sheriffs present convened an executive session at the 2013 Florida Sheriffs Association Summer Conference in Marco Island to discuss various law enforcement issues. After an in-depth conversation, the Sheriffs in attendance verbally voted and unanimously supported the Stand Your Ground law.

Sheriffs, who are independently elected and often have independent positions on issues, have always been known for listening to their community, and they will continue to do so.

A primary role for Sheriffs is to protect Floridians and visitors, and Sheriffs are always open to ways to improve public safety in their communities and our state.

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About the Gun Writer

Lee Williams — The Gun Writer — can’t remember a time in his life when he wasn’t shooting. Before becoming a journalist, Lee served in the Army and worked as a police officer. He’s earned a dozen national journalism awards as a reporter, and three medals of valor as a cop. He is an NRA-certified law enforcement firearms instructor, an avid tactical shooter and a training junkie.

When he’s not busy as an investigative reporter for the Herald-Tribune, he is usually shooting his AKs, XDs and CZs.